sheets all on the floor just like an ocean ...

[headandhand]

WHO: All y’all!
WHAT: Your regularly scheduled NAPs event for the month
WHERE: Fort Pillowtown
WHEN: Oct. 7-10
WARNINGS: Please use these if applicable!


Look at all of these bright, shining new faces! There’s even a few less bright, less shining faces - maybe even a few folks without faces - but hey, this city welcomes all types. Chances are, if you’ve just arrived, you're seeing some pretty crazy things, unless you're used to an eye-blinding amount of neon, robots, weird-ass technology, magic, and an omnipresent police force...and hey, if you are, congrats, you're gonna settle in juuuuust fine. But for the rest of you, the Head knows this has gotta be pretty overwhelming, right?

Well, since your quaint individual processing units are probably having a hard time, why not link up with another one? By which the Head means...

Hello, new citizens of Dualis,
and welcome to your monthly Network Adjacency Protocol~!

NAPs are a monthly community networking event similar to the Earth concept of speed dating! Two citizens (new arrivals and old hands alike) are placed at a table together with a handy cue card of queries to help break the proverbial ice. Ask queries and receive results, or ignore the card and yeet yourself straight into a brand new friendship! But don't be too shy, you've only got ten minutes together, and if you just sit in silence for the whole ten, the Network Admins are likely to come supervise and try to repair the uplink through a mild shock to the ol' central nervous system. You might find yourself saying all sorts of unintended facts about yourself if that happens...probably better to just make friends, right? Who doesn’t like friends?!

This month’s event is held at a new, super-comfy all-ages establishment called Fort Pillowtown. As the name suggests, it’s a large indoor space filled wall to wall with permanent pillowforts. There are a variety of sizes, shapes, and colors, with each individual fort constructed of gauzy hanging sheets, strings of soft lights, warm blankets, plush toys, a mini television with on-screen menu for choosing movies to watch and video games to play, and yes, lots and lots of pillows. Snacks and drinks of all sorts are available for purchase, as are whimsical onesies and comfy slippers to wear. Board and card game sets are also available to borrow or buy. Sounds like a dream, right?

So pull up a pillow pile, get to know your new neighbors, and enjoy a well-earned and comfy chill-out session. And hey, if you end up napping at NAPs, rest assured that it’s absolutely allowed.

Comments

[sanephiroth]

Don't think he doesn't notice her sketching, though it's not like she's bothering him. He raises his eyebrows at the answer.

"I see." Just like any other love story, minus the tragedy. "I've heard it described as bittersweet. An experience they'll never forget. Or one they never want to try again." He seems mildly amused. Maybe a little bitter. "I wouldn't know."

He turns to face her, inclining his head slightly. "I'm Sephiroth."

[merged]

His response doesn't surprise her too much given what he'd asked. It helps her feel more at ease, though, anyone admitting their inexperience usually does.

"Heather Mason," She offers as she flutters her gaze between the sketch in her lap and him. Ah, fuck, she needs to fix the nose and maybe the fall of his shoulders. She gets to it, looking up at him every now and again as she adjusts her work,"So, why are you scrolling through the romcoms?"

"I hear girls who've gone through a breakup like them." That she says with a bit of a shy, teasing grin.

[sanephiroth]

An amused huff and a shake of his head.

"There may be a breakup in my future but the relationship isn't romantic."

He glances at her sketchbook.

"Do you draw every stranger you see?"

[merged]

There's a flash of sympathy in her eyes when he mentions the future. She's only had a handful of relationships in her life, none of them romantic (with the exception of Vincent, maybe, but that kiss could have meant anything then), and she knows the end of one isn't a walk in the park; it's fucking hard. He looks like he can handle it, though.

Maybe.

At the question, Heather gives a confident dip of her head, pausing her work to answer honestly,"Just about."

The sketchbook is about 3/4 of the way full, pages gently worn and tabbed. Some seem to have suffered water damage, crinkled as they were, but each page was used. She filled it with faces, most of them strangers, and all of them unique. Beautiful or handsome or striking, it didn't matter.

"It's good practice and... I don't know, a good distraction," she admits, a shyness peaking through her false bravado. Something seems to strike her and her expression edges on that of concern,"It doesn't bother you, does it?"

She'll stop if he asks (and then finish it in her dorm).

[sanephiroth]

It's especially hard when the breakup is with a company that both dominates the world with its conveniences and has a powerful military presence. The exact same one that made him who he is. But she's not wrong. He should be able to handle it. Theoretically.

He looks out of the corner of his eyes, knowing his attention can be overwhelming for some at times, but he seems interested in what she's done in her sketchbook. He smiles and shakes his head at her question.

"No. You're not intruding." She's less obnoxious than the bright flashes of cameras for one. "Have you lived in this city long?"

[merged]

Heather offers him a rare, shy grin at his response, pleased she doesn't have to move on to a new subject. She liked the way his lines looked, how everything about him had a sharp, powerful flow to him. He exudes distance, coolness, but in a way Heather herself finds incredibly familiar.

She starts to carefully erase parts of the work, cleaning the lines, adding highlights and softening some of the harshness she'd started with. He'd seemed harsh from a distance but there's something else in him. At the question, she doesn't pull her attention from her art and gives a gentle nod,"Just a few months now. Kinda feels like longer, though."

She looks to him now, her blue eyes hiding sorrow and a fury it quells,"I guess that's what happens when someone's life is reliant on you back home and... now that you're here, there ain't shit you can do."

Ah, fuck, that was too much, wasn't it? Her gaze returns to her piece of art, more a way to keep from looking at him and revealing more than necessary,"'m guessing you're pretty new?"

[sanephiroth]

He holds still for her, keeping his expression neutral while she amends her artwork. He definitely doesn't mind her presence one bit. But her words draw a curious arc of his eyebrows.

"Reliant?" He probes gently. He's only ever taken life and kept himself separate from others. It's a foreign thought with a weight to it. Still, he nods.

"Yes, I arrived two days ago." There's still a lot to unravel, his own future notwithstanding.